 | | Spirits are high, we just arrive and negotiated our first foreign navigation issue! (the airport : )
Juan Santamaria International Airport, San Jose, Costa Rica
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 | | One of the inlets on the pacific side near corcavado
Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | We didn't know this at the time but this isn't our stop.... welcome to central america... and Golfito.
Short final to Golfito, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Ah, back on track for our trip. Final to Puerto Jimenez, at least the kids know to get off the runway.
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Yeah... i'm sure the corporate safety guy at J&J never saw this. That night i'd get a shock turning the damm thing on....
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | $4/night for a double room! With air and TV!
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The local taxi service
Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Sweet, big ass trees. This is what we came here for!
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Real parrots! Not some caged up and clipped twitters...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Wow... there's some cool stuff to see and experience here. Totally unlike anything i've ever done.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | um... ok. This sucks. Beach walking blows. Throw on a pack and it gets worse. Do that for several hours... yeah... ouchie.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | We got lucky. The rocky area ahead is not passable during high tide and 1/2 the time hikers have to wait several hours in order to keep going.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | I'm not sure what these cute little things are but we cam across a hundred or so crossing the path in front of us. They're kind of a cross between... kitten/racoon...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Tom's about to hit a deeper section, and this is high tide. I got my sleeping bag wet here : (
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Oh hell yeah this is camp! I was totally beat getting here. 80-90F, 100 humidity... that tells you you're living!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | As we lay there licking our wounds some rich chick flew in for lunch, then flew out. Dammit... places like this you need to work to appreciate!!!
Sirena, Corcavdo, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Landing on grass you need as much runway you can get. So if you come in low....
8.480076,-83.58937 (go google maps)
save file: small medium large |  | | Around camp there were lots of spider and howler monkeys. Way cool. Until you tried to go to sleep. Those buggers are noisy!!!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Only gringos sleep in tents. All the euros slept in the bunks and sheltered area in the building. They didn't keep going though : )
Estacion Biologica Sirena, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | We spent 2 nights at Sirena but now it's time to move on.
Sirena, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | A trail on the Osa Penninsula. Hmmm... not too many people come this way. The american in front of us were in for a bigger adventure, no boots and only a duffle bag to carry their stuff! Dad wanted to show his boy the world and some adventure... great story i'm sure!
Sirena, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | One of our first crossings, no big deal.
Rio Pavo, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | These f*ckers hurt!!! Left cutter ants, they hurt like no other ant i've been bitten by. Ouch!!!
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Jungle trekking...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Me at a water stop.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Tom filtering water. I show this picture to highlight Tom's boots. Yeah... he'd never hike in those overboots again. Solid rubber. So kids, try out gear before you go on an expedition! (like i'll learn that lesson : )
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Damm signs around here lie...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Tom checking to see i'm ok. I'm running out of steam...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | WTF, this place is supposed to be flat. Shit... these little 5m-10m hills are killing me. Oh... dammit... it just stared to dump! Raindrops so big they hurt.
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | We made it. My camera is about to short out but who cares (new slr), i have a backup. And i can sit down!
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Sunset
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Some rank Germans took the prime locations so we had to make do. Tom took the picnic bench....
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Me with my laundry haning out. It'll sit there the entire day and not dry out. Damm humidity.
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | And there nice wooden blocks here to walk oN!
Sendero, Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | I like the sun. Beat hiking in the rain most any day...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Hiking downhill, no one else for miles around....sweet...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Another little crossing. We though we figured out river crossings before we got here. Nope. And this river cost me something else... read on...
Corcavado, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The last crossing!
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Hiking out to civilization.. hiking out anyways...
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Taxi we thumbed down on the road.
Osa Penninsula, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Pulling into Puerto Jimenez again. This is the happening place on weekends. Not exacly club 54 but they need someplace too.
Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Shit, for $4/night we got 2 room! We could wash up, do laundry, and get damp clothes!!!
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Little geckos on the wall
Cabinas Bosque Mar, Puerto Jimenz, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Airport parking, departure and arrival gate, security, check-in, tarmac- everything rolled into one! Too bad the airline wasn't as efficient. Next time, take Nature Air!
Puerto Jimenex Airstrip, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | I like planes : )
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | So after the flight and 7 hr bus ride ($2) where i almost got pickpocketed we ended up at Arenal. We met some other gringos on the bus and hung out togeather for the next few days. Here we are following one of the hotel hucksters that congregate at the bus station when the white folks arrive.
Arenal, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | PAIN!!! Hiking in the river with the agriculture runoff gave me some nasty rashes on my pants covered portion. 106F water made it hurt even more. But it felt good!
Arenal, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Peace corp guy, me, peace corp gal, intel engineer, and tom.
Arenal, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The next day we decided to go 'white water' rafting.. this is a stop on the way...
?, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The scary river. Gee...seems a bit low.
Rio ?, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Rafting operation
Rio ?, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The next day we went to go see Arenal... i'm not sure what tom's doing...
Arenal-ish, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | That'd be the volcano in the background. They sucker a lot of tourists to come here to see it. But 99% of the time it's covered in clouds. Around 1am the clouds shift and that's the best time to see it. We heard it and saw a few lava bombs fall out...
Arenal-ish, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Breakfast before going our spearate ways.
Arenal, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | So we had to do the ziplines in Monteverde....
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | View of the towers and the cloud forest...the tour is way over rated but the zip lines are neat!!!
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Sweeeeet!!!
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Me and Tom on the highest tower
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Another view of the towers
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Some Quaker types came down here and bought up the place to start anew and practically own the regional cheese market.
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | My facination with coppers.
Monteverde, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Heading back to San Jose... we're going to get in a dispute with this cabbie when we arrive : )
The national highway, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Mark the peace corp guy trying to get a photo op but this kid and dog keep getting in the way
Arenal, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | She runs the little food shack on the corner (you'll see)
Santa Elena, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | White man crashed out in a pension
Santa Elena, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Old fort with lots of bullet holes. Probably from the last revolution, which was some time ago...
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Downtown shopping scene
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Where the Tica's and Tico's shop for everyday items
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Inside the mercado
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | More local scenes from the city. Costa Rica is generally a safe place but San Jose is a bit more crime ridden.
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | The hostel where we stayed. Nice place on the inside, built like a fort and you have to be buzzed in.
San Jose, Costa Rica
save file: small medium large |  | | Didn't i say this hostel was nice? Free internet and a pool!
San Jose, Costa Rica
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